Scott Rasmussen's Number of the Day for September 22, 2017
The Number of the Day columns published on Ballotpedia reflect the views of the author.
September 22, 2017: Forty-eight percent (48%) of Democrats now call themselves liberal, a 20-point increase from the beginning of the century when that figure was 28%.[1]
At the same time, the number of self-described conservatives in the Democratic Party has fallen from 23% in 2000 to 13% today. This data was provided by the Pew Research Center and is based on registered voters who are Democrats or independents who lean Democratic.
Putting the numbers in context highlights a significant change in the party over the past 17 years. When the 21st century began, there were nearly as many conservatives (23%) as liberals (28%) in the Democratic Party. Now, however, liberals outnumber conservative in the party by a three-to-one margin (48% to 15%).
The number of Democrats considering themselves liberal jumped following the Republican midterm victories in 2010 and 2014. It jumped again following the 2016 presidential election.
While there was also a shift in the Republican Party, it is not nearly as dramatic. In 2000, 57% of Republicans considered themselves conservative. That number first edged over 60% following the election of Barack Obama and is at 65% today.[2]
These numbers suggest that the growing gap between the parties results more from the Democrats moving left than from the Republicans moving right.
| Among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Conservative | Moderate | Liberal | Don't know | Net[3] |
| 2000 | 23% | 44% | 28% | 6% | 5% |
| 2001 | 23% | 43% | 29% | 4% | 5% |
| 2002 | 25% | 44% | 27% | 4% | 3% |
| 2003 | 23% | 45% | 29% | 3% | 6% |
| 2004 | 22% | 45% | 30% | 4% | 8% |
| 2005 | 20% | 45% | 32% | 4% | 12% |
| 2006 | 21% | 44% | 31% | 4% | 10% |
| 2007 | 21% | 43% | 31% | 4% | 10% |
| 2008 | 23% | 41% | 33% | 4% | 10% |
| 2009 | 22% | 42% | 32% | 4% | 10% |
| 2010 | 21% | 41% | 34% | 4% | 13% |
| 2011 | 20% | 43% | 34% | 3% | 13% |
| 2012 | 19% | 41% | 36% | 4% | 17% |
| 2013 | 21% | 41% | 35% | 2% | 14% |
| 2014 | 18% | 40% | 39% | 3% | 21% |
| 2015 | 17% | 38% | 42% | 2% | 25% |
| 2016 | 16% | 38% | 44% | 2% | 29% |
| 2017 | 15% | 36% | 48% | 2% | 33% |
| Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Conservative | Moderate | Liberal | Don't know | Net[3] |
| 2000 | 58% | 32% | 6% | 4% | 52% |
| 2001 | 58% | 34% | 6% | 3% | 52% |
| 2002 | 58% | 34% | 5% | 2% | 53% |
| 2003 | 59% | 34% | 5% | 2% | 54% |
| 2004 | 60% | 32% | 5% | 2% | 55% |
| 2005 | 60% | 33% | 5% | 2% | 55% |
| 2006 | 61% | 32% | 5% | 2% | 56% |
| 2007 | 63% | 31% | 4% | 2% | 59% |
| 2008 | 65% | 29% | 5% | 2% | 60% |
| 2009 | 65% | 29% | 5% | 2% | 60% |
| 2010 | 66% | 28% | 5% | 2% | 60% |
| 2011 | 64% | 30% | 5% | 1% | 59% |
| 2012 | 65% | 29% | 4% | 2% | 61% |
| 2013 | 66% | 28% | 5% | 2% | 60% |
| 2014 | 66% | 28% | 5% | 1% | 60% |
| 2015 | 65% | 28% | 5% | 2% | 61% |
| 2016 | 66% | 28% | 5% | 2% | 61% |
| 2017 | 68% | 27% | 4% | 1% | 64% |
Each weekday, Scott Rasmussen’s Number of the Day explores interesting and newsworthy topics at the intersection of culture, politics, and technology.
- September 21, 2017 – 50% of millennials would give up voting to have student loans forgiven
- September 20, 2017 – 1,597 bank branches closed by Bank of America since 2009
- September 19, 2017 – 60 percent of second-generation Mexican immigrants describe themselves as typical Americans
- September 18, 2017 – 64 percent of Americans have positive view of police
- September 15, 2017 – 37 percent of Americans can’t name First Amendment rights
- To see other recent numbers, check out the archive.
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See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Pew Research Center, "Democratic voters are increasingly likely to call their views liberal," September 7, 2017
- ↑ Pew Research Center data provided by email to Scott Rasmussen on September 20, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 This column gives the net percentage-point difference between those self-identifying as conservative and those self-identifying as liberal. Some numbers may appear off by one due to rounding.
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